mr. schumer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mer: are we in a quorum? the presiding officer: no. mr. schumer: okay. mr. president, first i understand that there is a bill at the desk that is due for a second reading. the presiding officer: the clerk will read the title of the bill for the second time. the clerk: h.r. 1799, an act to amend the small business act and the cares act to extend the covered period for the paycheck protection program and for other purposes. mr. schumer: in order to place the bill on the calendar under the provisions of rule 14, i would object to further proceedings. the presiding officer: objection having been heard, the bill will be placed on the calendar. mr. schumer: thank you, mr. president. now, mr. president, the asian american community is still reeling from the senseless murder of eight people near atlanta, six of whom were women of asian descent. it will be sometime before we understand what drove the madman who perpetrated this crime, but there is no doubt that abuse, prejudice, and violence ag

mr. schumer: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent that the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: just a word about the history-making nomination that was just approved by the senate. we've now made history twice in the last few minutes. we've made history twice because we've nominated the first native american secretary of the interior and the first native american cabinet official in american history. the confirmation of deb haaland is amazing. it is a huge step forward, and now it creates a government that more embodies the full richness and diversity of this country. we know for so long the native american community was treated badly, and we have a long way to go. but we have begun with the a.r.p. and now with the approval of deb haaland to be the secretary of the interior. we are moving forward, and she will do a great job as interior secretary. she represents a turnaround because the trump admini

mr. schumer: madam president. the presiding officer: the democratic leader. mr. schumer: are we in a quorum? the presiding officer: we are. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: now, madam president, yesterday, the senate completed an extremely productive day by confirming three members, three members of president biden's cabinet. today we're going to keep up the pace by moving forward on two more of the president's nominees. first the senate will begin the process of bringing xavier becerra's nomination to serve as h.h.s. secretary to the floor. this is a critical position as we continue to battle the virus, and i'm perplexed that none of my republican colleagues would vote for him. he's a capable man. he's worked hard to make sure that people get health care, and some have said well, he's not a doctor. neither was the previous trump nominee for h.h.s. who happened to be a pharmaceutical company executive. what would americans prefer? second, the senate will move forward with anot

mr. schumer: mr. president. the president pro tempore: the majority leader. and the senate is in a quorum call. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the quorum be dispensed with. the president pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. the majority leader. mr. schumer: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the consideration of s. res. 127, submitted earlier today. the president pro tempore: the clerk will report. the clerk: senate resolution 127, electing karen h. gibson as sergeant at arms and doorkeeper of the senate. the president pro tempore: is there objection to proceeding to the matter? hearing none, proceed. mr. schumer: i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to and that the motion to be reconsidered be made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. the president pro tempore: there being no objection, it is so ordered. mr. schumer: mr. president. i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to senate resolution 128, submitted earlier tod

mr. schumer: thank you. let me thank you for your beautiful exuberance as well. and the thanks goes to the senators who are standing here, our great committee chairs, and all of our senators who pulled together as one unit, beating back killer amendments, making sure the bill was as strong as possible. and i want to salute them. all of those who are here and some who couldn't be here. [applause] and i want to salute the house as well. we were a seamless web and we work together. democrats on the house side, democrats on the senate side. all together. because we knew how important this was to america. so what do we say to america? we say to america, help is on the way. help is on the way. you will receive $1400 checks by the end of march. help is on the way. vaccines will be available far more quickly to far more people in a shorter time. help is on the way. our schools will open safely and more quickly than we thought. help is on the way. half of america's children who are in poverty will not be in poverty because of this bill. help is on the way. [applause] we d

mr. schumer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: i move to proceed to calendar number 1, smst 11. the clerk: prp the clerk will report. the clerk: a bill to provide for exception to limitation against apappointment of persons as secretary of defense and so forth. mr. schumer: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: mr. president, as the senate prepares to take up the american rescue plan today, i want to remind everyone why we're here. this country is in the midst of a once-in-a-century crisis. not once in a decade, not once in every 50 years. once in a century. it's a crisis that is still very much with us, and it is deadly, deadly serious. it has claimed more than 515,000 precious lives across every part of the nation. for the better part of the calendar year, businesses have had to close thei

mr. schumer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: mr. president, today the senate has a packed schedule. by the end of the day, the senate will have confirmed another three members of president biden's cabinet. first up is representative marcia louise fudge to serve as secretary of the housing and urban development. she represented congress and served as the first african american and first mayor of warrenville heights in ohio. three million homeowners are in forbearance at the same time we're on the verge of passing major assistance for renters and for homeowners. i know that marcia louise fudge will help and i will focus on public housing, which i know she cares about a great deal as well. later this afternoon, we'll move to the confirmation of merrick garland to become attorney general. after donald trump spent four years -- four long years subverting the powers of the justice department for his own political benefit, treating the attorney general like his own per

mr. schumer: mr. president. the president pro tempore: the majority leader. mr. schumer: it's a proud day for the senate, and i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to the consideration of senate resolution 78, submitted earlier today. the president pro tempore: the clerk will report. the clerk: s. res. 78, notifying the president of the united states of the election of the secretary of the senate. the president pro tempore: is there objection to proceeding to the measure? hearing none, so ordered. mr. schumer: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. the president pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. schumer: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the consideration of senate res. 79 submitted earlier today. the president pro tempore: the clerk will report. the clerk: senate resolution 79 notifying the house of representatives of

mr. schumer: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from new york. mr. schumer: are we in a quorum? i ask unanimous consent the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: now, madam president, the senate returns this week to the business of nominations. today the senate will confirm congresswoman marcia fudge to be the secretary of housing and urban development, followed by confirmation votes later this week for merrick garland to serve as attorney general and michael regan to serve as the administrator of the environmental protection agency. finally, the senate will begin the confirmation process for congresswoman deb hall land before the week is out. she would be the first native american cabinet member of any agency and the first indigenous secretary of the department of interior, a profoundly historic moment given the troubled relationship between the federal government and tribal nations. despite republican obstruction, representative haaland will be confirmed. i will file cloture immediately after my remarks. on

mr. thompson: twice after today. senator schumer: twice after today. will have the good sense to pass this twice. and in the past when they sent it over last time, it went into mitch mcconnell's legislative graveyard. the legislative graveyard is over. h.r. 8 will be on the floor of the senate, and we will see where everybody stands. no more hopes and prayers, thoughts and prayers. a vote is what we need. a vote. not thoughts and prayers. and we will see where people stand, and maybe we'll get the votes. and if we don't, we'll come together as a caucus and figure out how we're going to get this done, because we have to get it done. for the lives of the american people, for the safety of our streets and particularly for our young kids. so many of whom in my state and all the states, mine and jerry's states, and all the states represented here whose lives were taken at such a tender age because of gun violence and guns. senator durbin will be holding hearings. and we are shining the spotlight on this issue. we're going to win on this issue. the american

mr. schumer: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, it's been a long day, a long night, a long year, but a new day has come and we tell the american people help is on the way. when democrats assumed the majority in this chamber, we promised to pass legislation to rescue our people from the depths of the pandemic and bring our economy and our country roaring back. in a few moments, we are going to deliver on that promise. this bill will deliver more help to more people than anything the federal government has done in decades. it is broader, deeper, and

mr. schumer: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader is recognized. mr. schumer: thank you, mr. president. now, i understand that there is a joint resolution at the desk that is due for a second reading. the presiding officer: the leader is correct. the clerk will read the title of the joint resolution for the second time. the clerk: house joint resolution 17 is removing the deadline for the ratification of the equal rights amendment. mr. schumer: in order to place the joint resolution on the calendar, under the provisions of rule 14 is i would object to further proceeding. the presiding officer: objection is heard. the joint resolution will be placed on the calendar. mr. schumer: thank you, mr. president. now, this morning the nation grieves with the people of boulder, colorado, the site of another mass shooting. a depraved gunman opened fire in a grocery market killing ten people, including a police officer. many more are injured. our hearts go out to the people of boulder and the families of those americans who have lost their lives so unexpectedly. our

mr. schumer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: are we in a quorum? the presiding officer: we are not. mr. schumer: thank you. first, mr. president, in a second i will move the p.p.p. bill to the floor. i hope and i would ask our republican colleagues to cooperate, that we can move this bipartisan p.p.p. proposal without delay. it passed the house overwhelmingly. a vast majority of democrats and republicans voted for t. i hope we can move quickly here in the senate. it expires on march 31. and there are some changes that were made in the arp that we need that people need time to adapt to and implement. to allow an elapse would not be the right thing to do for many of our small business people across the country. so i'm hoping that our republican colleagues will move the bill with the same alacrity it passed in the house with an overwhelming bipartisan -- with that, mr. president, i understand there's a bill at the desk and i ask for its first reading. the presiding officer: the clerk will read the title of the bill for the

mr. schumer: madam president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: now first and foremost, i want to thank everyone, everyone on the floor staff who worked late into the night and into the wee hours of the morning to finish reading the senate amendment to the american rescue plan. the folks who sit up here on the dais come to work every day with a very serious job to do -- helping the senate come to life and fulfill its purpose under the constitution. i'm sure you all didn't expect that part of your job this week would entail standing on your feet and reading dense legislative language for more than ten hours straight. i can't imagine that's anyone's idea of a good time. but as usual, our staff took their additional duties in stride and carried them out with professionalism and grace, finishing around 3:00 in the morning. and you're all right back on your posts this morning. thank you, thank you, thank you for your service, your dedication. you are the unsung heroes of this place. so to all the critical workers, not just those here on the dai

mr. schumer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: are we in a quorum? i understand there is a bill at the desk due for a second reading. the presiding officer: the clerk will read the tietlez of the bill for the second time. the clerk: s. 937, a bill to expedite review of hate crimes and for other purposes. mr. schumer: in order to place the bill on the calendar under the provisions of rule 14 i would object to further proceedings. the presiding officer: objection having been heard the bill will be placed on the calendar. mr. schumer: now on to my remarks, mr. president. a week ago the nation reeled in horror as a deranged gunman shot and killed eight people at three different locations across the atlanta area. six of them were asian american women. just six days later another shooting. ten people shot and killed by a gunman who entered a grocery store in boulder, colorado. some were customers, some were employees. one was as young as 20 and one as old as 65. one of the victims was merely walking through the parking lot after

mr. schumer? >> aye. >> mr. schumer, aye. mr. scott of florida? >> no. >> mr. scott of florida, no. mr. scott of south carolina? >> no. >> mr. scott of south carolina, no. mrs. shaheen? >> mrs. shaheen, aye. mr. shelby? >> no. >> miss sinema? >> yes. >> miss sinema, aye. miss smith? >> aye. >> miss smith, aye. >> miss stabenow? >> aye. >> mr. tester? mr. tester aye. >> mr. thune? mr. thune no. mr. tillis? >> no. >> mr. tillis, no. mr. toomey? >> no. >> mr. toomey, no. >> mr. tuberville? >> no. >> mr. tuberville, no. >> mr. van hollins? >> aye. >> mr. val hollen, aye. mr. warner? >> aye. >> mr. warnock? >> aye. >> miss warren? >> aye. >> mr. white house? mr. whitehouse, aye. mr. wicker? >> no. mr. widen? >> aye. mr. young? >> mr. young, no. >> all right, everyone, we've taken a listen to the ayes and the noes, and it's gone very, very much along party lines, as we bring back in nbc's garrett haake. garrett, i listened john manchin got the aye. when murkowski came along there was a bit of a pause, what is she going to do? she voted no. i know there was a lot of pressure, right, a lot of p

mr. schumer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: i move to proceed to calendar number 1, s. 11. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: motion to proceed to s. 11, a bill to provide for an exception to a limitation against appointments of persons as secretary of defense within seven years of relief from active duty as a regular commissioned officer of the armed forces. mr. schumer: thank you. mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: mr. president, i begin this morning with a very exciting announcement about critical leadership roles in the senate chamber. three outstanding individuals are set to resume new responsibilities -- lieutenant general karen gibson will serve as the next senate sergeant at arms while kelly fado will serve as deputy sergeant at arms and jennifer hemingway chief of staff. the senate sergeant at arms was established 223 years ago as an outgrowth of the office of the senate doorkeeper back when one of thing biggest problems was making sure the senate had a

mr. schumer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader is recognized. mr. schumer: thank you, mr. president. now today the senate continues its steady progress in approving highly l qualified nominees to serve in the executive branch. last night the senate confirmed dr. miguel a. cardona as the secretary of education, fulfilling president biden's promise to elevate someone with public school experience. gina marie raimondo will soon become the former governor of rhode island as she prepares to take the top job at the commerce department. and pending the senate's approval, dr. cecilia elena rouse will soon become the chair of the council of economic advisors. this morning i want to pause for a moment to recognize the historic nature of the nominees that president biden has nominated and that the senate has confirmed in the first month of the nation's administration. so far the senate has promoted the first black secretary of defense and the first woman to serve as deputy secretary of defense. after an unbroken streak of 77 male secretaries in a row, all the w

mr. schumer and i have been briefed on where they are going and it is consistent with the values we share, and the american people need us to act upon those values aired i am proud of the press conference this morning, speaking about values and weighing the equities and decisions we have to make. any questions? >> if you would like to be placed into the key to ask a question, please raise your hand under the reactions to. -- tab. one moment while reporters join the queue. our first question will be from trish turner from abc news. speaker pelosi: hi, trish. >> hi, madam speaker. i hope you can hear me. thank you for doing this. on the issue of immigration, quite a lot was said at the news conference today. i wonder, in your mind, there are so many members who are concerned about the situation, whether you call it a crisis or not. it is escalating and getting worse. i wonder, do you have a timeline in your head by which you need to see notable improvement at the border? it seems the president is frustrated by the situation and indicated even jobs might be on the line if he does not see imp

mr. schumer was our leader when we passed this bill in 1994, and i was relatively new member and we were his minions to get that bill passed at the time. it was hard, but it did happen and so, it is-- the chairman, the representatives of the judiciary committee will speak about that and the con subs committee congresswoman sheila jackson lee. so you'll have a full array of what the bills contain and i want to put it in this context. yesterday when i spoke on the floor about the american rescue package i said an important issue in congress the safety of our children, children, children, their health, education, and security of that i remember family, a safe environment they can thrive and world at peace they could reach fulfillment. the first three of those were addressed in the bill yesterday, and an environment in which they can thrive safely is what we are talking about today. there is no any-- nobody in congress's political survival is more important than the survival of our children. we think this should be bipartisan in congress as it is in the country. as it is in the country. over

mr. schumer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: mr. president, i forgot my glasses. mr. schumer: mr. president, i understand that there is a bill at the desk, and i ask for the first reading. the presiding officer: the clerk will read the title of the bill for the first time. the clerk: h.r. 1868, an act to prevent across-the-board direct spending cuts, and for other purposes. mr. schumer: i now ask for a second reading, and in order to place the bill on the calendar under the provisions of rule 14, i object to my own request. the presiding officer: objection being heard, the bill will get its next reading on the next legislative day. mr. sasse: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from nebraska. mr. sasse: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, i rise today to speak at some length, if time will permit me, about the same subject my friend from washington state so eloquently addressed. my colleagues know that although when i speak, i sometimes get ver

mr. schumer: mr. president, the covid-19 pandemic has revealed just how important the federal government can be in helping workers, families, and businesses during a time of crisis. congress has passed trillions of dollars in urgent relief and we have relied on federal agencies to implement that aid quickly, reliably, competently. so while it might not normally be as high profile as other cabinet agencies, the small business administration has recently been in the spotlight. over the last 12 months the small business administration has overseen two pandemic-related programs that will doll out -- dole out more than $1 trillion to our nation's small businesses, nonprofits, and religious institutions. moving forward, it will play a prominent role in implementing the american rescue plan. and today the senate will vote on president biden's nominee to take on that important job, ms. isabel guzman. ms. guzman could not be more ready. she comes from a family of small business owners herself. her dad ran his

mr. schumer. mr. schumer, aye. mr. scott of florida. mr. scott of florida, no. mr. scott of. mr. of south carolina, no. griff: now, one senator you won't hear from is republican senator from dan sullivan -- from alaska dan sullivan, had a family member pass away, i believe it's his father-in-law. he's gone back. that's why we believe that this vote will be roughly 50-49 and pass narrowly. i want to bring our congressional correspondent chad pell grim back in. chad, it's a very historic vote, but it's predictable. >> reporter: right. they thought they would be a able to get everybody onboard here, and this is why chuck schumer, the democratic leader, worked so hard with joe manchin yesterday trying to make sure he had him onboard. again, it probably helped democrats a little bit, the fact that under very unfortunate circumstances dan sullivan, the republican senator from alaska, had to go back because his father-in-law died. that means the math was 50-49 if they got manchin onboard. otherwise you had manchin maybe on the other side of the issue here. that's why they negotiated wit

mr. president of senator schumer, senator mcconnell about the american rescue plan, joe biden's proposal in his initial proposal as president to deal with the pandemic, the state of the economy and many other aspects of american culture and life that need to be addressed. clearly there is a difference of opinion. i couldn't help but think as senator mcconnell was recounting our experience last year that when he came to the cares act a year ago that 2 trillion-dollar plan to respond to the state of the pandemic and the economy, the plan that was engineered by treasury secretary mnuchin, a member of the trump administration and bargained and negotiated with republicans and democrats alike, that when they finally agreed the vote was 96-0 in this chamber. every democrat voted for the proposed cares act that was engineers by the trump administration. the party waswa pushed aside because the priority was our nation. it happened again in december of last year. president trump administration, treasury secretary mnuchin at the table, democrats and republicans bargaining the final vote 92-6 in the

mr. schumer: mr. president, as the senate prepares to take up the american rescue plan today, i want to remind everyone why we're here. this country is in the midst of a once-in-a-century crisis. not once in a decade, not once in every 50 years. once in a century. it's a crisis that is still very much with us, and it is deadly, deadly serious. it has claimedor

mr. schumer, i'm looking forward to those yankee games as well.criticizing roger wicker and other republicans for taking credit for what was in the bill. you've, i noticed, taken a different tact here and say i hope republicans recognize and acknowledge and take some credit for what is in this bill that will help their states and perhaps show a path that you all can work together. there's a lot of progressives who say they'll never work with you. if they couldn't get a single vote on this bill that enjoys 75% approval in the country, what can you work with them on? how do you view your relationship now? >> first, let me say, our number one goal -- i think this is the goal of all of our caucus from bernie sanders to joe manchin, we need change. no one is happy with the status quo. my view, and i think the view of most of our caucus, we would prefer with republicans to get that change. when we can work with them we will. as majority leader i have the ability to put bills on the floor. the first thing i put on the floor, my first act as majority lead

mr. president, freedom. chuck schumer, the majority leader in the senate for democrats chose to tweet out, a picture of him with two georgia senators. democrats promised big, bold covid relief and to be delivered and thanks them for their efforts to bringing the people of georgia the rescue plan. senator raphael warnock is up again in 2022. democrats want to hold onto that seed. from our viewers, gestapo in washington says the covid-19 pandemic has affected my family, especially my father. he got it october 2 and it hit him hard. he suffered severe symptoms and ended up in the hospital for two days, plus work for six weeks due to severe body pain, that includes my mother since she does not drive and got sick as well. unfortunately they did not qualify for stimulus checks when the government since they are a document. in this, i was hospitalized in the icu. i was almost intubated and i was a very high chance for mentality. the pandemic almost took white -- mortality. the pandemic almost of my life. host: if you would like

that was the -- that was the current democratic leader, senator schumer, in april of 2017, less than four years ago. here's another quote, mr. president. what about the nuclear option, doing away with the filibuster? i can tell you that would be the end of the senate as it was originally devised and created, going back to our founding fathers. we have to acknowledge our respect for the minority, and that is what the senate tries to do in its composition and in its procedure, end quote. that was the assistant democratic leader, senator durbin, in 2018, about three years ago. a few years ago, 33 members of the senate side signed a letter insisting that, quote, we preserve existing rules, practices, and traditions regarding legislation. now under pressure from the outside, many of our democratic colleagues are abandoning their stated principles as fast as possible. yesterday, senator durbin said the filibuster is not a core principle but, quote, an offhanded clerical suggestion. an offhanded clerical suggestion. and a number of senate democrats are trying to pressure the senior senators from west virginia and arizona to abando

senator schumer's family, secretary walsh's family, and, mr. president, it's certainly a story that i have in common with those two. you see, my great grandfather was from a family of irish immigrants, and he was also very involved in the labor movement. in fact, he was one of the original co-founders of the international brotherhood of electrical workers, the ibew. he was its first grand marshal. i have something that i'm quite proud of here, a page from the history books of the ibew talking about my great grandfather's great work for the ibew when it first got off the ground, and i'd like to submit this for the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. sullivan: so i look forward to working with secretary walsh on helping the men and women in america, certainly in my state, who build things, who build things. they succeeded. they rise up and help others rise up, other working men and women, the way secretary walsh's father did, the way senator schumer's grandfather did, the way my great grandfather did. it's a great american story

mr. president, madam vice president, majority leader schumer, that have gone in this courtroom having faith in a system that has been broken for eric garner, whose mother is here. that's been broken for a family that's here. that's been broken for others. we will stand up with dignity with this family. we need the senate to stand up for dignity with the people in this country. make no mistake about it. there were videos before and you didn't give us justice. there was a video of rodney king and it went to state court to let those police become acquitted. there was a video of eric garner, never got to court. you had the opportunity to make it right this time and make it right for the country. you will never be able to bring this family's brother back. you will never fill that hole. but you can in his name stop this from continuing to happen over and over again. and let me say to all of those that have marched down through the last several months, many with us, many are on their own, white, black, old, young, it doesn't matter. the intergenerational interracial communities that have marched i

schumer. he'll back my time. : : : mr. hoeven: mr. president? presiding officer: the senator from north dakota. mr. hoeven: thank you, mr. president. i rise today to discuss the $1.9 trillion spending bill that we expect to be considering probably starting tomorrow. the covid-19 pandemic has d eethe pandemic has impacted our communities causing corporate and degrees for hundreds of thousands of families who lost loved ones at the same time it's turnedour economy upside down . it's closed businesses as well as schools and churches. without a doubt during a pandemic that we here in congress should be coming together and working to provide relief for those who are struggling. and it's for that very reason that i'm proud that republicans and democrats have worked together. worked together over the past year on a very bipartisan basis, bipartisan basis to pass five different pieces of legislation to address the pandemic . in march 2020 we passed the coronavirus preparedness and response supplemental appropriations act by a vote of 96 to 1. we passed

mr. president, madam vice president, majority leader schumer, they're going into this courtroom having faith in staple that has been broken for eric garner, whose mother is here, that is broken for fred, whose family here and broken for others. we will stand up with dignity with this family. we need to stand up with the dignity of the people in this country. make no mistake about it, there were videos before and you didn't give us justice! there was video with rodney king and it went to court and let those police become acquitted. there was a video of eric garner that never got to court. you have the opportunity to make it right this time and make it right for the country. you will never be able to bring this family's brother back! you will never fill that hole but you can, in his name, stop this from continuing to happen over and over and over again. let me say all of those that have marched down through the last several months, many with us, many on our own. white, black, old, young, doesn't matter. the intergenerational, interracial communities that have marched is the reason why we're in

mr. speaker. where lobbyists, close to pelosi, schumer and biden are already chilling the bubbly. mr. speaker, americans see why this legislation will be the first covid bill to receive zero boish support. americans know this bill will benefit states and unions that have been poorly mising mored. but on main street, the small businesses will continue to suffer. $90 billion to bail out private pension plans. $500 billion to states and localities to keep their economies locked down. less than 9% of this $1.9 trillion goes to something covid related. meanwhile, planned parenthood gets funding. pensions get build out and san francisco's balance sheets goes from red to black. i said it before and i will say it again. planned parenthood can go fund themselves. if conservatives were in charge you'd see a limited, targeted relief plan while enabling businesses and schools to remain open and reigniting our economy. look at businesses and schools -- excuse me. look at florida and texas who have led the way. never forget these jobs are essential and the best stimulus package is to reopen. with t

you became president he would fight for justice he has supported this bill mr president madam vice president majority leader schumer they have gone in this court room haven't faith in a system that has been broken for aragon whose mothers here that's been broken for prayer do sami's here has been broken wagners we will stand up with dignity would just family we need to send it to stand up with dignity with the people in this country make no mistake about it they will videos before right and you didn't give us just a minute there was a video would write me king and it would destroy i couldn't let those police become acquitted there's a video it aired gonna never got to court you have the opportunity to make it right this time and make it right for the country you will never be able to bring this family his brother back you will never fill that hole but you can in his name stop this from continuing to happen over and over again and let me say to all of those that have marched down through the last several months many with us many are no no white black old young doesn't matter. and to generational and to racial. commu

mr. president and colleagues, i strongly recommend a no vote. the president pro tempore: the clerk will announcer: majority leader chuck schumer held a news conference to discuss the passage of the senate's version of resident biden's $1.9 trillion economic aid proposal. sen. schumer: okay. okay. thank you for all coming and look, a great day for the country. we had to pass this legislation. we made a promise to the american people that we would deliver the real relief they need and we have fulfilled that promise. nobody said passing one of the largest, perhaps the most significant bill to help the poor and working people in decades was going to be easy particularly with 50 votes but it is done and i said from the beginning we were going to power through, we were not going to let anything stop us until we get the job done and by god, here we are. i want to say one thing. i am so proud of my caucus. i love each one of them. they are so great. you know what unites our caucus? everyone knows, especially the 50 votes we have two pull together. everyone knows. you know i have a leadership team that meets on monday nights, and it has elizabeth warren and

schumer, with appreciation for the great work that he did in the senate. brought all of that beautiful exuberance together so that we could have success today. mr. leader, welcome back to the house. >> thank you. nancy let me thank you for your beautiful exuberance as well. and the thinks goes to the senators who are standing here. our greek committee chairs. and all of our senators who pulled together as one unit. beating back killer amendments. making sure the bill was as strong as possible. i want to salute them. those who are here and those who could not be here. i want to salute the house as well. we were seamless, we worked together. democrats on the house side. democrats on the senate side. altogether because we knew how important this was to america. so what do we say to america? we say to america help is on the way. help is on the way. you will receive 1400 dollar checks by the end of march. help is on the way. vaccines will be available for more quickly far more quickly, help is on the way, our schools will open more safely and quickly than we thought. help is on the way. half of america's children who are in poverty will not be in pov

mr. president. madame vice president.honored t and i join chuck schumer in acknowledging our members who are here, membersship, because without all of you, this would not have happened. and it certainly would not have handed without joe biden as president of the united states. mr. president, everybody is complimenting us and every time i say i accept on behalf of the house democrats. and of the staff of the house democrats. and i know of the senate staff as well. they worked so very, very hard. but let me say this about my members. imagination, works with the senate colleagues. i say the beautiful diversity of the members. and i say to them, our diversity is our strength. our unity is our power. and in this bill, our diversity to protect everyone in our country, toend the disparity and access to everything that the bill presents, our diversity was rejected in the house and senate. but unity on behalf of all of the american people is what tha made this such a triumph of. whatever differences as there may have been, certain exub ranlss here and there, we all-new new our purpose. and we were unified for the

mr. president i hope this is not a sign of things to come. i yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum. >> i listen to the speeches of senator schumer, senator mcconnell, about the american rescue plan, the initial proposal from the president to deal with a pandemic, the state of theth economy, and many other aspects of american culture and life that need to be addressed. clearly there is a difference of opinion. i cannot help but thank you senator mcconnell was recounting our experience last year, when it came to the c.a.r.e.s. act, one year ago, the 2 trillion-dollar plan to respond to the economy the plan engineered by a treasury secretary mnuchin to bargain and a, negotiate that when they finally agreed republs ninety-six / nothing in the chamber every democrat voted for the proposed c.a.r.e.s. act engineered by the trump administration. party was pushed aside with the priority of the nation that happened again in december the trump administration. treasury secretary at the table the final vote 92 / t six and those six were all republicans. again the democrats stepped up to say we will support the bipartisan effort becausen that

mr. speaker. where lobbyists, close to pelosi, schumer and biden are already chilling the bubbly. mr. speaker, americans see why this legislation will be the first covid bill to receive zero boish support. americans know this bill will benefit states and unions that have been poorly mising mored. but on main street, the small businesses will continue to suffer. $90 billion to bail out private pension plans. $500 billion to states and localities to keep their economies locked down. less than 9% of this $1.9 trillion goes to something covid related. meanwhile, planned parenthood gets funding. pensions get build out and san francisco's balance sheets goes from red to black. i said it before and i will say it again. planned parenthood can go fund themselves. if conservatives were in charge you'd see a limited, targeted relief plan while enabling businesses and schools to remain open and reigniting our economy. look at businesses and schools -- excuse me. look at florida and texas who have led the way. never forget these jobs are essential and the best stimulus package is to reopen. with t

schumer. thank you very much for joining us tonight, mr. leader. it's a real honor to have you here. first time as majority leader. >> i got a little teary watching that, so excuse me. i'm a crier. >> i know what it's like, and i was telling people on saturday when i saw that that moment is completely real. i was on the senate floor for a 51-vote win on a hugely important bill in the first months of the clinton presidency. and when you get those 51 there's nothing quite like it. you do end up loving every one of them. >> i truly do, and it's an amazing caucus. we talk to each other. we respect each other. we don't agree with each other on everything, but the bottom line is every member as you said knew that failure was not an option. this is such a major change for america. and we're delivering. i tell americans help is on the way. your $1,400 check for beleaguered people, help is on the way. your vaccines are going to get in people's arms much more quickly so we can get rid of this crisis. help is on the way. we are making the schools -- we'll allow the schools to open safer and mor